The present invention pertains to an apparatus for forward-facing rowing of a boat or racing shell.
The benefits of forward-facing rowing, including safer and more enjoyable rowing, are readily apparent. Patents that disclose various types of mechanisms for rowing facing forward include U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,482 issued to Henry; U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,943,250, 4,867,718, and 4,776,821, all issued to duPont; U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,314 issued to Waugh; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,830 issued to Cartwright.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,482 issued to Henry discloses an apparatus that has various advantages over previous patents, including the following: (a) it duplicates the rowing motion of conventionally operated oars, including full pivotal oar motion, as well as oar rotation around the oar longitudinal axis that alters the angular orientation of the oar face (known as "feathering"); (b) it provides rowing performance better than the performance attained by conventional rowing by lengthening the effective oar radius, which reduces the arc described by the oar blade in traversing a stroke of standard length (from an arc of about 90.degree. in length to an arc of about 60.degree.; (c) the lengthening of effective oar radius also permits shorter oars to be used effectively, which allows a rower to navigate narrower waterways; (d) it can be adjusted to permit the rower to raise the oar blades higher above the water than conventional rowing apparatus, which makes rowing possible in rougher water than can be accommodated by conventional rowing apparatus; and (e) it can be easily constructed and maintained in such fashion that very little energy is lost to friction even under the heaviest use.
Although the apparatus disclosed in the aforementioned patent issued to Henry has the important advantages listed above, it does not have the advantage that it can easily be installed in existing boats, without need of connections to the boat outside of the cockpit where the rower sits.
Furthermore, the Henry patent does not have the advantage that the rower can turn the boat as easily and rapidly by pulling on one oar more than the other, as is the case when the oars pivot near the midpoint of the boat.
Also, the Henry patent does not have the advantage that the ends of the oars may effectively be mounted low enough to provide for easy balance of the boat and an unobstructed forward rowing view.
Additionally, the Henry patent does not have the advantage that the radius of the arc described by the blade of the oar may exceed the length of the oar itself, nor that significant adjustment can be made to the leverage achieved at different points during the stroke.
Finally, the Henry patent does not teach an apparatus that reduces the fore-and-aft instability associated with a conventional sliding seat, while still permitting the strength of the rower's legs to be transferred to the motion of the oar blades. Specifically, the Henry patent does not disclose a mechanism whereby the rower's seat may be fixed to the boat, while both the rower's feet and hands may move in the pattern associated with conventional sliding-seat rowing so as to propel the oar-blade efficiently through the water.
A need thus exists for a forward facing rowing apparatus having the advantages over prior art listed above that U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,482 issued to Henry does possess, together with all the advantages listed above that said patent does not possess.